The Cloud Gate, one of Chicago's most famous sculptures.
Hello, faithful readers.
First off, I want to apologize for not being here as much as I’d intended. I’ve been busy. The insanity that was September is over (sigh of relief). But October is here! I welcome this month with open arms. For me, it is a time of endings and a time of beginnings. Both are very exciting.
The Latest Ending
The news of the month is… (drumroll, please) I just finished the first draft of Foreign Identity! Do you hear cheers and hurrahs? (If not, they just may part of the party in my own head.) Foreign Identity is the story I started writing as a series on the Creative Copy Challenge blog. It’s about two individuals who wake up in chains in a room, having no memory of their pasts, their imprisonment or each other. They must work together if they want to escape, figure out their identities and find their way home. (P.S. If you want to read the first chapter, check out A Consortium of Worlds speculative fiction e-zine, available for download on Amazon.) Since I started it, this story has morphed and changed a little – all for the best! I can’t wait to get to work on the second draft, but alas, it must wait because next month is (dun dun duuuuun) NOVEMBER!
The Newest Beginning
You know what that means, right? National Novel Writing Month is upon us! I will be diving in (with a gob of other nearly-insane writers around the globe) and writing 50,000 words in thirty short days. 50K (while whopping) isn’t typically a full novel for me. And so in December I will also be taking part in a nifty little thing called National Novel Finishing Month where I plan on stamping “the end” on that sucker before the year is up. Hurrah!
The novel I’ll be undertaking next month is a brand-spanking-new idea. It’s one that hit me with the exuberance to dive into a full-blown chapter synopsis (complete with titles!) within a few days of getting the inspiration. I haven’t settled on a permanent title yet, but for now I’m calling it Gateway to Reality. Here’s what it’s about.
Gateway to Reality
Wes goes to work, hangs out with his girlfriend and hopes to one day be a successful artist. He’s always believed that this life is real while the bizarre dreams that haunt him are merely fictitious constructs created by his subconscious mind. But when he finds out the opposite is actually true, his entire paradigm shifts.
Wes enters the real world when he goes to sleep – what he’s always thought were just dreams. Many of the people he’s taken for granted in his virtual life want nothing to do with him in the real world, namely his girlfriend, Emily. When the people closest to him are ripped from his life, Wes realizes what is really the most important. He must make the toughest decision of his life, before he loses Emily as well.
Gateway to Reality is centered around Chicago, namely several of its most well-known sculptures. This story meshes my love of art and design with my love of all stories fantastical. I’m super-massively-uber excited to begin! (Which is a great way to start NaNoWriMo, by the way.)
I have plenty to do in preparation for November. But I will do my best to keep you updated on all the exciting goings-on, so stay tuned. And if you haven’t subscribed, be sure to sign up for email updates. Then you’ll be in the know about my latest posts the minute they go live.
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